Tag: IPhone 5 »

Pangea Software announced today the release of updates for nine iOS games. The updates will allow all nine games to work in the native screen resolution on the 4" display of the new iPhone 5.

• Air Wings
• Bugdom 2​
• Cro-Mag Rally
• Enigmo 2
• Monkey Bongo
• Nanosaur 2
• Nucleus
• Otto Matic
• Warheads

As I'm sure everyone on the planet knows, the iPhone 5 comes out this week. If you are a heavy iPhone user you no doubt have some sort of a battery like our favorite, the Mophie for your iPhone. With the iPhone 5 release and the new Lightning connector, these old devices won't work. And Mophie and others don't yet have Lightning and iPhone 5 compatible devices available. We've found a solution, and have also found a great deal for you.

New Trent makes some of our favorite external batteries for recharging all kinds of USB connected devices. The IMP 120D is a massive 12,000mAh at about 1 1/2 the size of a deck of cards. That's enough to recharge the iPhone 5 multiple times. It is a USB charger -- meaning that you plug in a USB cable into the battery and then connect that to your device to charge it. So it works with a wide variety of devices. We've used our with iPhones, iPads, other phones, even digital cameras.

We got an email about a special deal from New Trent and Amazon.com, if you buy the New Trent IMP 120D, and use coupon code 3IMIRROR on Amazon, you get a second, slimmer 6,000mAh battery ($40 value) for free. Here's how to do it:

Add the IMP 120D to your Amazon cart from this link: New Trent IMP 120D

Add the iMirror, 6,000mAh battery to your Amazon cart: New Trent iMirror

Go to your cart on Amazon and enter promo code: 3IMIRROR and the price of the iMirror will be discounted to $0! One note - we have no idea how long this deal will last. If this looks good to you, buy it quickly.

Now when you get the batteries, just plug in the Lightning USB cable you got with your iPhone 5 and you are all set to recharge on the go.

iOS 6 Roundup

Last week, Apple announced the iPhone 5, much to the surprise of everyone I’m sure (that's sarcasm). The new phone has some pretty nifty features, but not everyone will be waiting in line for days in order to get their hands on one. Those of us who don’t want to trade-up just yet still have a way to scratch that “new Apple gadget” itch, however: iOS 6. This new iOS will be compatible with most older devices, including the iPhone 3GS (Yay!) and above, the fourth generation iPod Touch and up, and the iPad 2 and later. So while I might not be able to get my hands on a 5 just yet, I can still feel special when my phone starts to do new and exciting things!

iOS 6 - Plenty of changes to some old favorites

Before we get in to all the major changes and new features I want to take a moment to go over some of the smaller tweaks to the apps many iOS users can’t live without. The camera has gotten a bit more attention this time around. Users can take panoramic photos now with their iPhone 4S/5 and iPod Touch 4th/5th generation, up to 240 degrees both horizontally and vertically. They have simply to sweep the camera along using a predefined motion and the device and software takes care of the rest. Then, said photos and everything else on the camera roll can be shown off to friends quickly and easily with the Photo app. Video chatting with friends and family via FaceTime has also gotten much simpler now that the app can work over a cellular network and Wi-Fi is no longer required--provided the carrier allows for that sort of thing, naturally.

Even the Notification Center has been revamped with Twitter or Facebook posting allowed directly from the notifications window and the option to quiet those irritating 3am notices, thanks to the new Do Not Disturb feature (more on that later). Last, but certainly not least to the accident prone, Find My Phone has been updated to include a Lost Mode which allows users to remotely lock their misplaced phone with a 4-digit code and display contact information for honest folks to use in order to return the lost device. This goes hand-in-hand with Find My Friends, an app that uses GPS to keep track of friends and family, even going so far as to issue alerts when certain individuals have left or reached specific destinations. It sounds weird, but think of it in terms of the kids leaving school and getting home. Pretty nifty, I know, but this is just the beginning.

iTunes, App Store, iBookstore - Refurbishing the storefronts

iTunes, the App Store, and the iBookstore are also getting adjustments by way of some slightly revamped storefronts, Facebook integration (“like” items in the store or view items that friends like), and a new preview feature that automatically keeps track of any apps/music/books that you browse through. You can view this list from within any of the three stores--and across any of their iOS devices thanks to iCloud--and make purchases from it directly.

From Loop Insight today: Samsung got some unexpected answers to their question of "What electronic device would you want with you on a deserted island" on their Facebook page. Lots of people responded, the iPhone 5 would be their deserted island device.

Credit to Samsung -- at least the didn't go all crazy and delete the answers.

It’s that most magical time of year: the time before a new iPhone launches. This means that for many people, it’s time to sell that old phone to buy the new one. For those looking to ditch their phone, here’s three handy tips to make sure everything goes smoothly in transitioning to the iPhone 5.

Make Sure the Phone is Backed Up

There’s no real need to start fresh with any missing contacts or apps when using a new iPhone. Follow our handy guide to setting up backups via iCloud or iTunes. Then, when the new iPhone is purchased, simply restore to the backup of that phone. On iTunes, this is just as simple as selecting the device from the list when choosing what to restore from. For iCloud backups, make sure to log in to the same iCloud account when restoring on the new device. It may be a good idea to note which iCloud account is being used on your old iPhone. Remember as well that backups are cross-compatible, so even an iPod touch backup could be used to restore to the new iPhone

Make Sure the Phone is Erased.

No one wants to accidentally hand over a phone with all their contacts, saved payment information in apps, and their most embarassing photos to a stranger or even worse: a family member! Thankfully, erasing a device is easy. Just go to Settings -> General -> Reset and choose Erase All Content and Settings. This will erase all user data on the phone. Make sure it’s backed up first! This will leave it in a state where it will be possible to restore to a new device. If you’re selling it to someone you don’t know, you may want to set it up as a new device just so they can test the features out, while showing how to erase it so they can set it up themselves, possibly even from a backup they made!

Sell Securely

A website like Gazelle or a store like GameStop may make it easy to sell the phone quickly and securely, but this will not net as much as selling it directly to another person will. Selling via eBay or Craigslist is a good way to quickly sell the phone, but it comes with the inherent risk of dealing with strangers. Hold on to the original receipt if possible in order to ensure that you have proof that you purchased it in case someone tries to claim that the phone was stolen. Especially log your phone’s IMEI or ESN, a phone's unique identifying number, if possible, as it is what the carriers use to track stolen phones. Here's how to find this information on the iPhone itself. Having a log of this may help if a scammer tries to claim you sold them a stolen phone.

Good luck out there!

In spite of preorders of over 2 million iPhone 5s in less than 24 hours, the iPhone 5 is boring. Yes, it's true. It's boring. But, it needs to be. You see, boring works, boring is usable.

First, what is boring about it? It improves on every single aspect of the iPhone 4S. Some features are considerably better. LTE data speed is astonishing. The overall speed of the device, faster than any Android phone, is amazingly responsive. The screen expands for the first time ever in a uniquely usable way. So why then, is it boring? Because it's Apple.

Apple has a track record of revising their products in ways that don't vastly change the device in any single iteration. And that's the case here. The device is amazingly more usable, but it's not that different. Well that is until you start using it. Those writing that it's boring don't have the device yet.

You have to remember that there are a few fundamental things that set Apple devices apart from other device manufacturers:

Apple doesn't add features people won't use.

Apple doesn't add features they can't control.

Apple makes stuff that just works.

Apple innovates through revising what works, not bulk overhaul.

Many in the media expect every company to add "amazing" new features with every revision. There's a problem with that though, most of those amazing features are unintutive, uneeded, and unwanted. But, those features take up words and make writing about the devices easier. The reality is that no one uses these oddball, yet somehow banner features like the stuff Samsung adds with every new product revision. Whizbang features do not equate with usable features. Apple is more pragmatic than that and add features that work and that people will use.

What's the summary of all this? The iPhone 5 is fastest, most usable, feature rich, and amazing, yet boring phone ever.

I can't wait for my boring new iPhone.

This week at 148Apps.com, everything was about - what else? - the iPhone 5. Site founder and all-around iPhone guru Jeff Scott provided some much-needed advice for anyone interested in switching carriers when upgrading: "So you, like many, have decided to switch carriers with the iPhone 5? You could go data only but perhaps you still need the phone part of the iPhone. Let’s say for instance you are tired of the customer-hostile management at AT&T and want to move to Verizon. Just, you know, as an example.

Let’s rundown what you will need to make the switch and any pitfalls you might hit. It’s a fairly simple process, but there are some things you should know first, before starting."

Read all of Jeff's great advice at 148Apps.com.

Meanwhile, GiggleApps headed to the Great White Way, courtesy of Amy Solomon's review of Broadway Barks: "Broadway Barks is a lovely interactive story, written, narrated and sung by Tony-winning actress Bernadette Peters, based on the previously published children’s book with CD of the same name. Versions for both iPhone as well as iPad are available.
This is a cute and charming story of a dog who no longer has a home and is all alone in the park until he is discovered and given a chance to be seen at Broadway Barks – a charity event in New York City to promote the adoption of animal, ultimately finding a new home."

Read the full review at GiggleApps.com.

Finally, 148Apps.biz featured a how-to for creating a better mobile app from Prince Arora: "You just came up with a great idea for a mobile app or you are working on a new feature to add in your existing app. You have laid out all the screens, primary & secondary actions, and interaction flow in your head and you get down to write the code.

Great! However, this scenario is the same as starting to build a house without a blueprint. Wireframes are like blueprints and visual design is like interior decoration for an app.

So before you start writing code, work on a blueprint — this includes writing down the features/user stories, designing the flow charts, defining the primary & secondary action and designing the wireframes. These sounds like a lot but I’ll walk you through each step to show you how simple it can be."

Read all of the steps at 148Apps.biz.

And that, my friends, brings us to the end of a very busy and exciting week. Stay abreast of the latest news, reviews and contests by following us on Twitter and Liking us on Facebook, and be sure to meet me back here next weekend for a rundown of what you might have missed. See you next week!

So you, like many, have decided to switch carriers with the iPhone 5? You could go data only but perhaps you still need the phone part of the iPhone. Let's say for instance you are tired of the customer-hostile management at AT&T and want to move to Verizon. Just, you know, as an example.

Let's rundown what you will need to make the switch and any pitfalls you might hit. It's a fairly simple process, but there are some things you should know first, before starting.

Double check your new carrier choice

While you can look at coverage maps online to see where your new carrier of choice has coverage (see below for quick reference). It's always best to double check the service in the places that matter most to you. For most people this is going to be home and work. Find someone you know on your new carrier in or near those locations and check their signal strength as close to those locations as you can.

This is a much more reliable way to test that your new carrier will have service where it matters to you most.

Call your current carrier, and be nice

It's a good idea to call your current carrier to find out what your early termination fees will be, if any. They may give you the tough sell and try to get you to stay. Be careful though, unless the deal is killer and enough to sway you, they could renew your contract for another two years if you agree to a new plan rate.

Try to be nice to them, even though you are likely fed up by now. Remember that the person you are talking to doesn't set the policies or prices.

If any of your phones are still under contract, you'll be looking at an early termination fee. This will be somewhere around $350 minus $10/per month fulfilled in your contract depending on when you signed up and what carrier you have. And that's for each line still under contract.

If you are out of contract, the carrier you are switching from shouldn't charge you anything to cancel, except perhaps a small account change fee; they get you whenever they can.

Make the Switch

To actually pull the trigger and make the switch you'll create a new account at your new carrier of choice. This is typically done when you order your new phone. In this case we'll assume you are ordering the iPhone 5. You'll create the account during the ordering process and then cancel your old account after your new phone is all set up and working.

You'll need your current mobile phone number, your account number, and your account password from your current carrier to make the switch. Though those things are only needed if you wish to keep your current phone number. If you are getting a new number, you'll just need to call your current provider to cancel your account once the new one is working.

Next you'll need to decide if you want to do the switch online or in a store. Each has it's advantages. In store you will have someone who will help you walk through the process. If you do it online you won't need to wait in any lines.

Make the Switch Online

You can pre-order the iPhone 5 and switch carriers at the same time. Here's what you need to know to do so.

First, during the order process you want to create a new account with your new carrier. You will likely need to choose what level of service you want to for the new account and then continue.

Next, you will have two choices when you order your phone online. You can either keep your current phone number (called number porting), or you can get a new one. Think about both options, you may want a new number, especially if your old boyfriend/girlfriend keeps bugging you.

If you want to keep your current number, at some point during the process it will ask for your current phone number, your account number and password with your current carrier. The account number and password are what you typically use to login to your carrier's site to check your account. For some carriers, your account number may be the same as your phone number.

Enter this and it will walk you though the process to port the number. A couple more steps and you'll likely be asked for your Social Security Number as the carrier will want to do a credit check before opening your account.

Finish the process answering things like your billing address, then do the normal hardware ordering process, pay for it, and then wait. And skip to The Switch is Done below.

Make the Switch In Store

By far the easiest way to do this is to go to the carrier you want to move to. After all they are incentivized (and the salesperson usually gets commission) to get you set up properly. You can also go the the Apple Store to do this and it will be just about as easy.

When you get to the store let them know that you want to create a new account with your new carrier. They will get the information needed and help you pick a service level plan. You will need to decide if you want to keep your current phone number (called number porting), or you can get a new one. Think about both options, you may want a new number, especially if your old boyfriend or girlfriend keeps bugging you.

The sales assistant will need your phone number, account number and password with your current carrier. The account number and password are what you typically use to login to your carrier's site to check your account. For some carriers your account number may be the same as your phone number.

The rest of the process will be fairly straightforward, filling out forms with your address, billing info, etc.

The Switch is Done

Ok, the switch is done, your phone is ordered, now what?

Nothing will really happen until you get and activate your new iPhone. When that happens, your phone number will transfer over and your old account will be a zombie. This will likely happen in store if you go that route, or when you plug in your phone for the first time if you order it online. If you ported over your number, that will take 1-3 hours from when your new phone is turned on. Once that's done your phone number will ring to your new phone on your new carrier.

Once you have your new phone, new account, and everything is in working order, it's a good idea to call your old carrier again. You will need to close the account down and pay any termination fees. If you don't close your account, they may just keep it open and assign you new phone numbers and keep charging you.

While talking to them, ask them to unlock your phone as well. It will make it worth a bit more money down the road.

Backup and Restore Your Old iPhone

If you already have an iPhone you'll likely want to use iCloud or iTunes to backup and restore your phone. This will bring over all your apps, preferences, and data to your new phone. Here's our Howto backup your device with iTunes or iCloud guide that will walk you through that.

And finally...

Enjoy your new iPhone and your new carrier!

They will hopefully be better for you. Remember that each carrier has dead spots, don't expect your phone to magically work everywhere. And the dead spots that you memorized for your old carrier will likely be different now. You phone may get reception in places it didn't before and will likely not get reception in all new places. Hopefully you did step one above to make sure it works in the places most important to you.

Consider donating your old phone to a charity that helps people in need. Or you could sell it, hopefully as an unlocked phone. Just make sure to wipe the old phone's data before you get rid of it (instructions in the above linked backup post).

Quick Reference

Here's a quick reference to some of the items you may need in helping you decide if you want to switch carriers.

AT&T
[ Account Login ]
[ Coverage Area Maps ]
[ Plan Prices ]

Sprint
[ Account Login ]
[ Coverage Area Maps ]
[ Plan Prices ]

Verizon
[ Account Login ]
[ Coverage Area Maps ]
[ Plan Prices ]

Apple held a special event in San Francisco today to announce the iPhone 5 and a few other things. While just about everything about the new device had already been leaked, in typical Apple style, the event still held a few surprises.

Here's a quick rundown of what you need to know about the event today.

It's in the numbers...

As Apple does at just about every event they started out with a recap of some recent numbers showing how well they have done recently. And this time around it was no less impressive. Here's a quick rundown of the amazing numbers all in one place for quick reference:

iPads
The iPad continues to impress and dominate the tablet market. In the words of Tim Cook, Apple CEO: "The iPad has 91% of the tablet web traffic. I don't know what these other tablets are doing? Perhaps they are sitting in a drawer."

17 million iPads sold last quarter (April-June 2012), that's more iPads than any PC manufacturer sold of their entire PC line
84 million total iPads sold through June 2012
iPad Market Share, June 2011 - 62% market share
iPad Market Share, June 2012 - 68% market share
iPads represent 91% of web traffic from tablet devices
94% of the Fortune 500 companies are testing / deploying iPads

App Store
700,000 iOS Apps in the App Store
250,000 iPad Apps in the App Store (iPad and Universal)
90% of apps in the App Store are downloaded each month
The average iOS customer uses over 100 apps

Devices
400 million iOS devices sold through June 2012
150 million Game Center users
600 million sets of those standard iPod headphones produced

iTunes
26 million songs
20 billion total downloads
iTunes store available in 63 countries
435 million iTunes accounts with 1-click purchase
66% of downloads come from iOS devices

That's a lot of really impressive stats.

iPhone 5

The iPhone 5 takes the iPhone 4S and makes just about everything better. When it took center stage we finally got to see the new specs of this oh so lust-worthy new iPhone.

The iPhone 5 will be available for pre-order this Friday, the 14th. With delivery and store availability a week later on the 21st. The prices end up being the same as the 4S, $199/299/399 for 16GB/32GB/64GB with two year contract.

In the US it will be available on the carriers that currently offer the 4S, AT&T, Verizon, and Sprint.

The major new features include a larger screen, about 15% taller than the current iPhone screen. That doesn't seem like much, but it lets you get an extra row in just about every list app. And it will give you that much more screen in games -- or that much more screen that your thumbs won't cover.

For apps that are not yet optimized for the iPhone 5, you will see those apps just as you do now. No stretching, you'll just have small black bars on the top and bottom of the screen.

The other big change in the phone is a new dock connector, called Lightning. This is an all digital connector that adapts the pins to what your connected device needs to do -- audio, video, charging, etc. It's build much more robust than the current dock connector and can be inserted either way.

The downside to the new connector is that you are going to need to buy $30 Lightning converters for all of the devices that you need to use that have the old style dock connector. This could get expensive. Not to mention the 20+ dock connector cables I have in a drawer.

A much faster processor, a better camera (though still 8MP), a much better screen that supports a larger color gamut, a FaceTime HD (720p) front camera, all in a a thinner and lighter phone.

Oh yeah, and it has LTE as well. Major speed bump there.

It's a great upgrade and worth it if you use your iPhone a lot. It's not a drop everything and upgrade new device as there's no feature that is just going to make you really crave it. If anything, the new dock connector will make this an expensive update for many. But it is a good feature bump and if you are due for an upgrade, it's the one to go for.

iOS 6 Release Next Week

We got a quick recap of iOS 6 and the features we had already seen. They have gone through testing and iOS 6 is ready to release next week on September 19th.

The one new iOS 6 feature discussed was the ability to create Panorama images. It's done quickly and easily by selecting Panorama from the camera options menu and sweeping the camera from left to right. It was shown working on the iPhone 5 and the new iPod touch. It's not know at this point if this will work on other devices.

iPod touch is a first class citizen again

The iPod touch has been a bit ignored in recent years. The upgrade announced today gives it a huge update and brings it in line with the iPhone 4S / 5 hybrid specs. It's a great upgrade to what is, but is not marketed as, the biggest selling portable gaming device.

The 5th generation iPod touch will sport the same screen as the iPhone 5, and will have the same processor as the 4S and a similar camera to the iPhone 4. It's a great update.

The updated iPod touch will be available in five colors in October for $299 for 32GB and $399 for 64GB versions.

Earpods - 3 years in the making

Apple also introduced new earbud that were three years in the making. The Earpods are really quite good, if a bit badly named. They will also ship with the new iPhone and iPod touch.

Great bass response, amazing for earbuds. They don't seal in your ear, so no outside noise reduction. But the flip side is that they are much more comfortable.

So that's it, the rundown of what you need to know. A great event and some great new products.

We can expect more news from Apple before the end of the year. I wonder what it will be...

Apple is expected to announce the new iPhone 5 at a press event this week in San Francisco. The release of the iPhone 5 should follow shortly after that, perhaps as early as September 21st. Without any consideration of the new hardware, there are already a few hurdles that Apple will need to overcome to allow the iPhone 5 and successive devices to reach their full potential.

Took a Samsung to the knee

The problems with Samsung are really two-fold. The most immediatly pressing are the rumors that Samsung will attempt to file an injunction to stop the sale of the iPhone 5 if that device supports LTE. With their pride still quite hurt from losing their latest patent battle in the US with Apple, they are looking for a way to regain a bit of pride. What better way than to mark it's territory and stop the iPhone 5 from being released by filing for an injunction based on their LTE patent portfolio.

On the flip side, Apple also has quite a few LTE related patents, recently purchased and the ones they already had. This should stop a judge from allowing the injunction, but you never really know with technology and judges. If this happens, expect a bit of a stock hit.

The long term problem with Samsung is their step-by-step duplication of Apple innovations. This will take Apple a long time to overcome in the courts, though recent court rulings have been both for and against Apple. It's a long road, and unfortunately will slow down both companies, and others in the industry. The only real winners in the fight will be the lawyers, as usual.

This week at 148Apps, we left our white shoes behind and got ready for some football with Carter Dotson's round-up of apps for the NFL 2012 season: "Are you ready for some football, in particular the 2012–2013 season of the premier American football league, the National Football League? Well, with the season kicking off tonight with the Super Bowl champion New York Giants playing the Dallas Cowboys, I’ve collected four apps to help make the game-watching and fantasy-football-playing experience better. No matter what, they’re better than the replacement refs are going to be!"

Read all of Carter's picks for the season at 148Apps.com.

Over at GiggleApps, Amy Solomon reviewed This Is My Body-Anatomy for Kids, saying, "I have really enjoyed perusing this application, consisting of many sections that cover such topics as how fast one grows, the skin, one’s senses, as well as the different systems of the body, such as digestive, respiratory, muscular, nervous and skeletal, going into a very nice amount of depth for children to appreciate.

As this app opens up, children are given a choice of characters to follow, nicely including boy and girl choices some of which are children of color and an Asian character – lovely inclusions still not seen often enough in the US iTunes store."

Read more about this fun and educational app for kids at GiggleApps.com.

And stalwart reporter Carter Dotson returned yet again, this time on AndroidRundown, to look at the latest developments from Apple iPad rival Amazon: "While rumors of a new iPad mini spread, and the Nexus 7 enjoys its sales numbers, Amazon has laid dormant until now with the announcement of new Kindle Fire devices.

The flagship is the Kindle Fire HD. This will come in both an 8.9" variety and a 7" variety; the specs on the 7" are supposed to be the same as the 8.9", but Amazon was more keen to show off this version. It's got a 1920×1200 screen (true HD!) which is 254 ppi (compared to the iPad retina display's 264 ppi), to go along with a Texas Instruments OMAP 4470 processor, which Amazon claims can do 50% more floating point operations as compared to the Tegra 3 processor in the Nexus 7."

Want more? Get more by reading the full article at AndroidRundown.com.

And that's a wrap of this weekly wrap-up! Join us throughout the week for the latest contests, reviews and news on our Facebook site as well as on Twitter. Until next week, remember - no white after Labor Day!

Jim Dalrymple has posted the details of the next Apple event announced today.

It's already fairly well known that the event will be about the iPhone 5, the 5 in the shadow in the image in the invite is just confirmation.

We'll have full details and our thoughts on the next iPhone right after the event next week.

Now that the third generation iPad has been released, rumors are starting up about the new iPhone (iPhone 5? the “new” iPhone?). Apparently there’s been some information ‘leak’ that’s started the rumor that the new iPhone will have a bigger, 4.6-inch Retina display.

Of course, we see no facts from anyone proving that this is true. Nor are most people putting much thought into the consequences of changing the dimensions of the iPhone in such an extreme way. John Gruber (at DaringFireball.net) made a great point,

“...this new iPhone would need way more pixels than the current 960 × 640 iPhone display. (If they increased the size but kept the pixel count the same, it would drop beneath Apple’s “retina display” threshold — not going to happen.) That means every app in the App Store would need to be redesigned/resized.”

My math may not be perfect, but going from a 3.5-inch diagonal to a 4.6-inch diagonal doesn’t quite double the area of the screen. So in order to keep the new iPhone at Retina quality, Apple would have to add a quite odd amount of pixels. Updating the graphics in apps for developers wouldn’t be as simple as doubling the resolution. As Gruber said, they would likely have to redesign almost every app in the app store.

My guess: 4.6-inch screen? Not very likely. Chalk this up as another reason we don't traffic in rumors.

It's starting to get chilly in a lot of places and that means that folks will likely begin donning gloves to keep their digits warm. Unfortunately, if you're an iOS user it can be rather difficult to utilize your mobile device in blustery conditions, as the iPhone's touch screen doesn't play all that nice with gloves. That problem may soon be solved though, as rumor has it Apple is reworking the screen on the iPhone 5 so it's more glove-friendly.

Hitachi Displays has created a new projection-type touch panel akin to what the iPhone already uses which has no problem playing nicely with gloves or even a plastic-tipped stylus. Basically, the screen is able to read a touch even through insulators such as cloth, allowing the screen to react even though it isn't receiving direct finger contact. In another practical application, the screen also works when touched with a fingernail, eliminating the annoyance of not having your iPhone register your taps simply because your nails are getting in the way.

Just because the tech exists doesn't mean Apple is guaranteed to use it, but there's little reason to suspect they won't. Considering current iPhones only work with one specific type of Apple-approved glove the company would likely be very happy to expand functionality and ease the burden on consumers. Furthermore, considering Apple is often the company leading the charge on capacitive touch screens, they're always interested in any major breakthroughs.

The only thing we don't yet know is how thick a glove users can wear and have this new screen still function properly. While very thin gloves seem to work just fine, we still have questions about the heavy-duty snow gloves that are ideal for harsher climes. Of course, the folks who live in places where thick gloves are acceptable are often so adapted to the cold they don't wear gloves at all, but that's mainly because the pain receptors in their brain are frozen solid so they don't even realize their fingers could snap off if they even try using their iPhone while outside.

[via PatentlyApple]

Last week, we reported that the white iPhone has been delayed until Spring, and along the way linked to a couple stories with possible reasons why. One of the more outlandish-sounding ideas was that Apple was killing the white iPhone entirely and just waiting for the iPhone 5, but suddenly that idea doesn't seem so crazy.

Last week, Apple pulled the white iPhone 4 from its online store, basically removing any possibility that it will be available for pre-order or sale anytime in the near future. The device hasn't been wiped totally out of existence though, as Apple's iPhone gallery still touts pics of the enigmatic phone alongside other, existent products.

So what are we to make of all this then? From the order of events (Apple posting the phone in the store, announcing the delay and then pulling it entirely), we're led to believe that the company had every intention of releasing the device for the holidays, but had to pull the plug at the last minute due to undisclosed reasons. We assume the issues are technical in nature, as there have been all sorts of rumors about the iPhone having trouble with pictures, lighting and so forth due to the lighter casing. The actions of the company this week seem to to be the result of slamming the brakes on a locomotive running at full steam; at this point Apple's just hoping the whole train doesn't derail.

While a Spring release is still the company's official line, the idea that the phone may ever come out is looking less and less likely. If the iPhone 5 arrives around June as expected would Apple even bother to release a soon-to-be-outdated iPhone 4 model, or will they just cut their losses and move on to the next generation? We believe that if the snags that have held up the device don't clear up soon then it will definitely be the latter.

[via TiPb]